Cutting the tint

Well for my whopping 2nd post I was curious about cutting the film on the vehicle. I laid the tint out on a friends car and began cutting the tint. When I was done I noticed I had scratched the glass with my blade (he didn't mind because it was cheap). I then moved to the passenger door and tried not to cut so deep but then I didn't cut deep enough and had to recut the film. I have heard of laying it on flat glass but How do I get my tint shaped to the window if I don't cut it on the car? Sorry for the lack of knowledge on tinting and please feel free to laugh just don't laugh too hard

are you using a stainless steel blade? if you are using one then you need to snap off a section of the blade to start with a fresh blade.

Ya I use and olfa blade and I usually snap off a section. I'm just always afraid with a brand new sharp blade on the glass I'm going to cut into it.

a sharper blade is better than a dull one. it doesnt take a whole lot of pressure to cut the film with a sharp blade. youll get the hang of it.

That's what I like about this forum. I visit multiple forums on topics other than window tinting and this is the only forum I know of where almost all the members are willing to help out new people and seem to be just down to earth. Thanks man

Yes, this place is very good.

If your using the olfa knife they usually come with those carbon blades that will cut the piss out of a window (i know from experience as well). The stainless steel blades are harder to cut the glass with but its possible if you go about cutting like a DA lol Keep the angles of your knife as low as possible. If you cut with that 90 degree angle your more than likely gonna have scratches. As for the cutting on the backboard. What you do is simply cut the minimum amount on the car and do all your final trimming on the board. I start off with the top edge of the window then gently glide my blade down the long edge of the window, slide the window about a 1/16 in to the right ( to give you a little room to play with) then I cut the small side. I hope you can make some kind of sense of what im trying to say. Good Luck!

Awesome detail on cutting the pattern

For starters which would you rather cut your finger with... dull or sharp? I know your are thinking neither but you must learn this important lesson soon.

Now I have a little test for you so you can feel the difference. First load up a new blade. Sorry first, have you had a tetanus shot? If the answer is yes then continue with the lesson.
Ok Carefully slice one of your less useful fingers right on the tip near the distance it fits up your nose. Stop laughing and shove it in to measure it. Ok now you know where you can cut. You want to slice quick and clean through the epidermis (thats the outer layer that keeps the juice in).You want to slice down to the dermis where the pretty red juice is.Think about the ease with which the nice sharp blade just slides through your little sausage fingers with little effort on your part. Now snap a fresh one and put the point against a brick or concrete surface and drag the point of the blade about a foot or so. Now don't snap that blade and go ahead and see how much more effort that it takes to slice your finger near the other slice and feel the difference in effort it takes to do the damage.
Regarding film installs. Over time you will be able to tell by feel when its time to snap the blade. Until then you may want to snap for each cut. And as you get the feel of a nice snap increase the time you use the blade until you can feel the friction as it dulls.
I've heard of another way to teach the light touch that only needs 2 Bandaid first aid strips. First stretch one over an uncut finger tip and get a new snap and start cutting just the Bandaid not your finger. This is very useful and only painful if you suck at it hence the need for the second Bandaid. Have fun learning and keep superglue handy for next weeks lesson in first aid.

OMFG great post Fox!

Sounds like TOTW material.

Safer way to compare is to take a sheet of paper.
Snap off a new tip.
See how easy it is to cut the paper.
Then, do the drag across a brick or the sidewalk for a foot or so.
Notice how much more difficult it is to cut the paper ?
Plus you save your fingers !

Way back when I first started tinting I made the mistake of a carbon blade on glass. It was not pretty...

OUCH!!! Your not the only one. When I first started I did the same thing. Luckily it was on my truck and friends vehicles. They were pretty cool with it since I tinted their windows for free